


On the Mirk and Midnight Hour

by JazTheBard



Series: Silmaril Theft Fae AU [2]
Category: The Lord of the Rings - J. R. R. Tolkien, The Silmarillion and other histories of Middle-Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Fae, Ballad 39: Tam Lin, Developing Relationship, F/M, Kidnap Dads, Pining, Romance, both of those are important, eldritch peredhil, i guess i write songfics now?, rated T for one (1) suggestive pun and a lot of thirst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-29
Updated: 2020-12-29
Packaged: 2021-03-11 03:07:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,196
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28408212
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JazTheBard/pseuds/JazTheBard
Summary: Celebrían, on a journey towards Lindon, sneaks off for a night to visit her crush.This would, of course, be much less remarkable if her crush were not the fairy prince.
Relationships: Celebrían/Elrond Peredhel
Series: Silmaril Theft Fae AU [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2114283
Comments: 16
Kudos: 76
Collections: Tam Lin Fan Lin





	On the Mirk and Midnight Hour

**Author's Note:**

> ok so this is part of a big au that lives rent free in my mind, but for the purposes of this fic here's what u need to know:  
> -mae and mags survived  
> -e&e got "re-kidnapped" (read: ran away to spend more time with their dads) and founded rivendell 1600 years early  
> -elros left and did the numenor thing shortly after, elrond stayed longer but visited and eventually went off to gil-galad  
> -elrond is back because he "made a deal for aid" in the war against sauron after eregion got got (he wanted a break)
> 
> anyway i was GONNA leave the tam lin stuff unaltered and be very nonspecific (there are no names mentioned in the whole story) but the name janet really bothered me so i gave up and translated
> 
> translations:  
> -orveredh: direct translation of pomegranate ("seeded apple") to sindarin because hades and persephone reference  
> -tam lin: in quenya that's "craft song"  
> -lissë: "grace", technically janet means "god's grace" which is "eruanno" or "erulissë" but yknow, rhythm
> 
> am i exploiting the fact that "carterhaugh" and "rivendell" have the same stress pattern? of course!
> 
> flower meanings:  
> Monkshood: chivalry  
> Coreopsis: love at first sight  
> Myrtle: good luck in marriage  
> Alyssum: worth beyond beauty  
> Goldenrod: encouragement  
> Globe amaranth: immortal love

She knew she shouldn't be here. She hadn't been invited, except under the most general definition, and her mother would have a fit if she knew.

On the other hand, at this present moment she was much more likely to get in trouble for trespassing, and there was someone who would defend her from that.

(Probably.)

(If he could.)

(Whatever.)

She hummed snatches of a tune beneath her breath as she hurried through the shadowed forest, hoping she remembered the way.

There!

A familiar landmark, a single standing stone lit up silver by the full moon. Now she just needed to get his attention. She took a deep breath and sang, trying not to sound too much like she was dropping hints.

_Young maidens know for them to go_

_To Rivendell's forbid,_

_But never-a-mind what old men say,_

_That's just what Lissë did._

_She had not pulled a single rose_

_When up jumped young Tam Lin--_

She broke off, blushing. The next bit was far too obvious; he was perceptive and certainly didn't need to hear how interested she was in the idea.

( _"No maiden comes to Rivendell and a maid returns again,"_ indeed!)

There had been no movement, no sound, but by the stone there stood a familiar young man as if he'd always been there.

"Where are they getting these ideas?" he said, an undercurrent of amusement in his voice. "I don't just live in a wood accosting young maidens."

"You're certainly doing it right now," she observed, instead of saying _I rather wish you did._

He coughed awkwardly. "Well, you did ask, sort of, and what kind of a host would I be to deny such a request?" He held out a hand to her. "Do come in! I'd escort you myself, but I'm afraid I can't pass beyond the stone."

She took his hand and walked in, allowing herself to be led to an orchard of what looked like every kind of fruit tree there was.

He let go, and she hopped up to sit upon a ledge with a low stone wall as he walked to a pear tree, which bent a branch to his open hand unprompted to give him a fruit. He tossed it to her.

She laughed and tossed it back. "I know better than that, my friend!"

"It's in exchange for your opinion on how it tastes, then," he said, grinning and throwing it back again to her. "It's the first year the tree's produced much, and I want to know if it's any good."

Satisfied, she took a bite. It was incredible. "It's good!" she said. "What are you going to call this kind?"

"I... haven't decided yet. It's a cross between two cultivars my brother planted here. Not the same trees, obviously, fruit trees don't live long," he hastened to explain, "but from trees descended from them."

She nodded in understanding.

"Anyway, you could name it, if you wanted," he said.

"Are you sure you want me naming something? Don't your folk put a lot of stock in names?" She gave a dramatic gasp. "Oh, you're appealing to my sense of vanity and hoping I'll name it after myself! Clever."

"I already know your name!"

"You know _part_ of my name. Not enough to do you any good, and in all the food I've eaten here there's not a bit I owe a debt for. Either you're very bad at this or you're too polite to actually do what's expected." She tried not to sound too disappointed about it.

He sputtered. "I -- you -- you're a _guest!_ I mean, technically. It definitely still counts from when you visited officially, so I'm still honor bound to keep you safe. That is absolutely how it works."

She decided to change the subject.

"You couldn't pass the border," she noted. "I distinctly remember you crossing it to greet my family when we came here."

"That was a special circumstance. It's noticeable when I cross it; this wouldn't be secret if I had. And I'm not supposed to leave."

"Are your fathers really so controlling, that they would keep you here against your will?" She realized the stupidity of that question the moment she finished asking it, but he didn't laugh.

"I can't say they wouldn't, given that they once did," he began, and _everybody knew about that,_ how could she have forgotten, "but they wouldn't do it again. I'm here because I want to be. And because I made a deal."

"Oh yes, your deal, the one that definitely exists, because your fathers certainly don't give you everything you ask for without a second thought," she said, rolling her eyes.

"They can't say no to me anymore, used up all their chances early on by telling me I wasn't allowed to leave." Despite the implications of that statement, he was smiling.

They fell into companionable silence for a time, each eating a pear.

She broke it with quiet humming of that damn ballad currently stuck in her head. To her surprise, he sang along.

_An earthly knight, oh, once was he_

_Till one fell day did ride_

_And seven years in the land of Fae_

_Did young Tam Lin abide!_

"Inaccurate on many counts, I must say," he added after finishing. "I was only six years old, hardly a knight, and I was there for much longer."

"Oh, _that's_ your problem with the song?"

"I can have multiple problems with the song! The name isn't so bad; 'craft song' seems... not inaccurate, considering my family. But on top of the slander, it gets the numbers wrong!"

She couldn't help it. She laughed. "What are the correct numbers, then?"

"Seven times seven. I was in Faerie for forty-nine years the first time, then free for about six months, then back."

"And that was for how long?"

"Several hundred years. Then I was allowed to leave, and eventually I made the deal that means I can't leave for a long while."

"I remember, you'd only just started on your time when my parents came to speak to yours. You were acting very strange."

"I was getting readjusted! It's different here, and I'd only just gotten used to wearing glamours again when I had to get rid of them so as not to frighten anyone."

The pout on his face was just _adorable._ Maybe she should be proactive and just steal him away instead of waiting for him to do it.

(In the romantic fashion, of course. One had to be clear about these things, with a man who'd been stolen as a child and raised with love by the fae who'd taken him.)

"You seem to be quite at home for someone who, by his own admission, is here as the result of an ever-so-heroic self-sacrificing deal."

"Well, not _just_ because of that. This is home to me; I'm practically one of the fae by now. By adoption, at least," he amended.

"Interesting position to be in."

He groaned. "It really is! The first time was easier because everyone thought I was just dead, but after that, it was all sorts of worry and pity." He drew in on himself slightly. "But now... now people aren't sure whether to fear me or fear for me. They can't tell if I'm in danger or I _am_ the danger."

"I don't think you're either," she said, scooting closer. "For all you pretend to be both, I don't think so."

She did _not,_ thank goodness, say what else she thought, which boiled down to _Please show me a reason to fear you, please be a danger to me!_

"What do you think I am then, O wise lady?"

She hummed as if in thought, trying to push down both the answers that came readily to mind and the blush rising in her face. "A lovely person who likes a bit of needless melodrama," she said, trying to sound careless, "although that was clear the moment I met you."

She paused. "And I've seen your fathers, you know, and how they act towards you. You weren't ever in danger. I know you'd never hurt me, either."

 _Prove me wrong prove me wrong prove me wrong,_ she thought.

He was silent.

She changed the subject. "Anyway, why don't you name it Orveredh Pear?"

He laughed. "Pomegranate Pear? It seems a bit confusing, why would you--" He stopped, a blush overtaking his face. "I -- I didn't give it to you to _trap_ you here!"

If only he had! She would hardly mind, but he was apparently dedicated to keeping her safely not enchanted. It would be sweet if it was something she wanted.

 _Trick me into telling you my name,_ she thought. _Give me a pomegranate and I will eat it without hesitation! Have you not noticed how much I want you to steal me away? Keep me here forever, to be feared for and feared!_

Aloud, she said, "Oh, I know, better luck next time! Perhaps I'll be less on top of things then." And really, even if she intended to let herself be seduced or tricked, didn’t she deserve for him to put some effort into it? Sometimes a girl just wanted to feel wanted, after all.

“I’m not trying to! Your parents would kill me, for one thing,” he said, which was a valid concern. Her mother might be inclined to sympathy -- for her at least -- but her father would never allow her to stay there.

 _But even he would have to hold his tongue if we were wed,_ said her traitorous mind (if he were reading her thoughts she would die of embarrassment). _He could say nothing about your fathers being a danger to me then. Demand my name, forbid me from leaving! Make me your wife!_

He wouldn't. But she could dream.

"Yes, well, they're not nearly so overprotective as yours," she said. "Didn't they make child-sized armor for you because they were worried you'd get hurt?"

"I regret telling you that story," he muttered, head in his hands.

"Oh no, that was your fathers. Publicly. In front of my mother."

"That's even worse!"

"Don't worry, she stopped them before they got too far into the well of embarrassing anecdotes, although I think it was probably so she could get to the part where she threatened them to make them give you back. My father tried guilt tripping, which was much more effective."

"It didn't work," he said.

"Well, _obviously_ it didn't work. I wouldn't have to sneak off to see you if it had, and -- and you wouldn't be so happy, either. This is your home."

He turned to her, an unbearable kind of softness in his eyes, and said, "It is." It seemed that there was more to that thought, but he did not speak it aloud. "And how are things for you, these days?"

"Well enough. I'm on the way to see your cousin, to help him out in your absence." She bit her lip, then took a risk. "I don't _think_ my mother is trying to set me up with him, but goodness knows how her mind works." _Be jealous!_

Instead of what she wanted, he laughed. "I wish her luck," he said. "He's not interested in that kind of thing at all."

"And you would know?"

"Of course! He's like a brother to me. I made the deal for him, you know. I wouldn't sacrifice myself for just anyone."

And yet he risked so much to keep her safe -- was this a sign of his affection? They would both be in trouble if they were caught, her for trespassing and him for hiding her presence and protecting her.

Maybe she wasn't just anyone.

The thought buoyed her. "Well, you don't have to worry. I'm not interested in him, and he'll help me sneak off to see you whenever I want, I'm sure."

"Whenever you want? Goodness, I'll have to find you a guest room if you'll be here that often."

To keep herself from saying _Oh, no need, I'll stay in yours,_ she lightly shoved him. "Don't get proud. I'm just using you to get at your father's cooking."

As they had been sitting there, flowers had bloomed around them. She hadn't noticed until just now, when a monkshood plant burst into blossom right next to her face.

She looked around. There was coreopsis at her left hand, and sprigs of flowering myrtle at her right. Above her head had grown a crown of goldenrod.

Neither of them spoke now, looking into one another's eyes. In her opinion, he could consider her well and truly seduced.

Was this it? Would he kiss her here, as she sat spellbound with wonder, the autumn flowers blooming upon his command? Would he place another fruit in her hand with honeyed words to bring her into the enchantment he had woven over this orchard?

(Would he marry her in the breathless silence of the night, with only the stars as witness?)

He didn't, of course. But he leaned in close as her heartbeat quickened, and tucked a single globe amaranth behind her ear.

Her breath caught.

He let his hand brush her cheek as he pulled away, eyes never leaving hers.

Giddily she wondered what would be owed in return. That was how the Fair Folk did business, she knew; all things came with a price.

(There _was_ a natural opposite to being decked in flowers...)

She smiled and toppled back onto a bed of sweet alyssum which had definitely not been there before, pulling him down next to her. There they lay and looked up at the stars together through the sparse autumn leaves, more flowers blooming with every passing moment.

She couldn't say how long they'd stayed there in peaceful quiet, listening to the breeze in the leaves and the rush of a distant river, but he broke the silence with a murmur of the same song as before.

"Lissë, gird your kirtle green and braid your--" he broke off for a moment, "--silver hair, and get ye back--" He stopped there. The line referred to golden hair and they both knew it. Her hair, though, was silver-white.

The silence fell again, less comfortable this time.

"Do you think they wrote that song about me?" she asked suddenly, deciding that awkward conversation was better than awkward silence.

He sat up in startlement. "I hope not!" Apparently realizing how that sounded, he amended, "I mean, it's kind of rude to go and write songs about another person's love life, especially when it's not even true! And obviously I'd never--"

"Never behave like that, I know." As much as she would like him to, she'd admit that his open determination to keep her safe was part of the attraction. She propped herself up on an elbow. "But you can't deny I'm the only person who comes here regularly to see you who isn't obliged to. Maybe people are reading into it." They weren't, at least not on her part. But his?

"If people have really noticed, we might have problems," he said, sidestepping what she actually wanted to know. "If my fathers get suspicious -- I can't lie to them, and they're so overprotective--"

She sat up to clasp his hands. "Shh, no, it'll be fine! It's just a song. It might not even be about you, maybe it's that person who recently joined the fairy court?"

"You might be right," he said, calming slightly. "Everybody knows about him, don't they? He's song material."

"Everyone knows about him," she confirmed. "If only because they feel betrayed. They were kind of counting on him to rescue you or something like that."

 _Who would they send after me,_ she thought, _if I disappeared into this realm? Of course, his fathers would never let me join the court if they knew I had designs on him._

He squeezed her hands in return. "Thank you. I'm sorry, I just--" he gave a small laugh. "I worry, you know. I wouldn't want my parents, or yours, to get suspicious."

"I wouldn't mind staying. If your fathers caught us, I mean, and made me stay," she said. _Or if you decided to keep me here,_ her mind added helpfully. _They could hardly mind that! If you ever said to them you liked me, I’m sure they’d insist, even!_

"That's very nice of you, but I think our plan should still be 'not getting caught,' given everything."

“Hmm, all right,” she said with a grin. “But one of these days you know you’ll have to tell them we’re friends.”

“And you’ll have to tell your parents, too; don’t put _all_ of this on me!” he said, mock offended. “Anyway, would you like to come to the winter solstice ball, if you can slip away? It won’t be _safe,_ but I can assure you it’ll be fun.”

She tried very hard not to read into this. "I'd love to! But are you sure you won't need me to rescue you from being sacrificed on Hallow's Eve? I already know you can change forms, I've seen you do it."

He rolled his eyes. "No, thank you. I could do _without_ the whole 'turning into a flame' part, even if there's precedent for it."

"Suit yourself."

"You'll be careful, though, won't you? At the ball?"

"Of course I will, goodness, it's like you don't even know me!"

He gave her a deadpan look. "You're trespassing in Faerie. _Again._ Forgive me if I doubt your self-preservation abilities."

"Don't forget that I'm both trusting and accepting an invitation from the fairy prince, even though I certainly shouldn't." She reached out and tapped his nose playfully. "Is there a dress code? I wouldn't want to stand out." _Not to anybody but you, at least._

"I'm sure you'll look wonderful in whatever you choose," he said. "And I'll glamour you, so you won't seem out of place."

That compliment was likely just politeness, but it still counted, right? It certainly _felt_ like a real compliment; she was practically floating.

"Well, I wouldn't want us to clash," she demurred, hoping he'd confirm that they were going as a pair and not separate.

"Oh, that's a good point! I'll wear purple, how's that?"

Mentally running through her wardrobe for complementary things, she said, "Purple is fine. So--" She broke off upon seeing the position of the stars overhead. "Oh no."

"It's getting late," he said, finishing her thought. "You'd better leave quickly. Come with me!" He grabbed her hand (and for all that it was for practicality's sake, it was _very_ forward of him) and pulled her to her feet.

They ran to where she'd entered, the tranquil timelessness of before now gone, and came to the standing stone.

"Last chance for me to rescue you," she said, out of breath. _Last chance to force me to stay!_

"I don't need rescuing, my friend." He smiled. "Now go!"

She blew him a kiss as she ran off into the trees, hoping to return to her traveling party before they noticed she'd left.

(The flower he'd placed in her hair remained vibrant until she returned to him once more.)

**Author's Note:**

> celebrían just wants to live a fantasy romance novel and she is VALID (and also she writes trashy gothic romances with thinly veiled self inserts of herself and elrond)
> 
> also looking up autumn fruits and flowers for this took FOREVER lol
> 
> full disclosure when i started writing this i was like "huh this is very gen for a romance fic but then again idk how to write romance" and then the thirst started ahdfkjdsfhkjs. also it turns out romance is easy it's just yearning and flower language
> 
> anyway, if you liked it, please leave comments and kudos!! :)
> 
> In light of recent events: I do not consent to my own original ideas that appear in my fics being used without permission or without credit. If you are able to pick up ideas from my fic then you are certainly able to ask me for permission, and if you are going to publish, credit is REQUIRED.
> 
> This includes names such as elenyafinwë, aþelairë, and almatáru, as well as a number of other details and ideas that appear in my works.
> 
> If you are going to use my ideas for fic that excludes LGBTQ+ characters, for reasons religious or other, I do not give you permission to use them, even with credit.


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